I mentioned a while back that I haven't yet had cause to do much video (TV or movie) downloading from the iTunes Store. I imagine if I had a video iPod I would do more, though I don't know when I'd really watch much on an iPod; I don't commute on a train or subway, and I don't find myself waiting with a time to kill very often.
Still, I think the availability of TV shows on iTunes is fantastic. Here are a few reasons why:
1. This week our TiVo had a hiccup in recording Heroes and Studio 60. (Long story, but it's actually not TiVo's fault.) What are we to do? Within hours of realizing the problem, I had downloaded the missed episodes from iTunes. Problem solved. (Even better, I set my laptop on the dresser, grabbed the Apple remote, and used Front Row to watch Heroes from bed. That's more in appreciation of the MacBook Pro than the iTunes Store, but it was fun.)
2. Last spring Dana and I started watching Battlestar Galactica on DVD; we'd been given season 1 for Christmas (a great gift). By that time season 2 was already on the air, but we stayed away from that so we could go in proper order. Season 2 was done in two halves, for some reason, so the next DVD set we got was Season 2.0, the first half of season 2.
When we watched the last episode in that set, season "2.5" had been on the air for a number of weeks, but the DVD set wasn't going to be available for a while. Having just watched the cliffhanger, we couldn't wait to see what happened next. Again, we downloaded just the episode we needed, this time within the hour. On that occasion we hooked up my laptop to the TV and watched it there.
3. Classic TV. They've got some great old shows on the store, as well. I downloaded and watched the pilot episode of The Incredible Hulk. That was fun. Glad I didn't have to buy a full DVD set just to watch it.